Tool-operating machine.



G. P. THOMAS. TOOL OPERATING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC-28,1914.

Patented Mar. 14, 1916.

3 SHEQETSSHEET I;

INVENTOR WITNESSES THE coLuMmA PLANOGRAPH 10., WASHINGTON, D. c.

G. P. THOMAS.

TOOLOPERATING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED"DEC.'28,-l9l4.

Patented Mar. 14,1916.

THE COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH co., WASHINGTON, D. c.

e. P. THOMAS. TOOL OPERATING MACHINE.

APPLICATlON FILED DEC-28.1914.

Patented Mar; 14, 1916.

3 SHEETSSI 1EET 3.

UNITED strArEs PATENT 1 ounce.

GEORGE PAUL THOMAS, or eLE-Ns AW, PENNSYLVANIA.

TOOL-OPERATING MACI-IINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

. Application filed December 28, 1914. Serial No. 879,275.

carriages to bring to the tool, and by successive step -by-stepadvances, the material to be operated upon, means being provided toadvance the carriage, and stopping mechanism to arrest its movement atpredetermined regular or irregular intervals. 7

he object of my invention is to improve the carriage driving andstopping mechanism. I

A further and more specific object is to provide a machine wherein thework-carriage may be intermittently driven forwardly, uncontrolled bythe stopping mechanism, and thereafter be yieldingly driven rearwardlyto engage the stopping mechanism.

A still further object of my invention is Figure 1 is a side elevationof the machine Flg. 2 an end elevatlon thereof, the plane of view beingindicated bythe line IIII, Fig.

.1; Fig. 3 a detail side view to enlarged scale of the drivingconnections and mechanism; Fig, 4 a sectional view taken on the brokenline IV-IV, Fig. 3; Fig. 5 a sectional view taken on the line VV, Fig.4:; and 'Fig. 6

a plan View of the driving pinions, the plane of View being indicated bythe line VI-VI, Fig. 2.

In the several figures like numerals are used to designate like parts.

The punching machine may be of any suitable construction. That shownherein is particularly adapted for punching plates, and comprises aframe 1 provided with a reciprocating head 2, to which a pair ofpunching tools 8 are secured. The head 2 is reciprocated in the usualand well known manner by means of a rotary shaft 1, suitably connectedto, or forming a part of a power shaft 5. Such shaft is provided with apinion 6 meshing with a pinion 7 secured to a shaft 8, which may bedriven continuously in any desired manner. A further essential detail ofthe punching machine consists of dies 9 suitably secured to the frame 1beneath the punching tools 3. The work-carriage or spacing table mayalso be of any suitable construction. In the form shown herein thematerial to be punched, such as a plate 10, is borne upon a carriage 11,movable upon suitable tracks 12.

To the end that the construction of the machine may be'simplified by theeliminaand tear of relatively large impacts caused by the arrest of thecarriage after it hasbeen moved through a complete spacing interval, thecarriage is intermittently advanced distances slightly greater than thelongest intended spacing interval, and is then given a reverseor'rearward movement, the stopping mechanism being effective on suchrearward movement'to arrest the carriage at the desired point. Anysuitable stopping mechanism whereby such end may be attained may beused. In the present embodiment of my invention, suitably spacedstopping elements 13 are formed integrally withv a metal bar 14:removably secured in any desired manner to support 15 disposed centrallybetween the tracks 12,12. The stopping elements are regularly orirregularly spaced, and itwill be understood that, in this arrangement,different bars 1 1 will be provided when necessary to punch plateshaving different spacing arrangements. "The work-carriage 11 is providedat its rear-end with a pawl 61, which, when the carriage is advanced ormoved forwardly, willride over the stops 13, but which will be engagedby a stop on the rearward or reverse movement of such carriage.

While any suitable means may be employed to intermittently move thecarriage in the manner described, it is preferred to coiirdinate suchmovement with the reciprocation of the punch in such a manner thatbetween each operation of the/punch the carria-ge'will be firstadvanced, and, at the conclusion thereof, moved rearwardly to engage astop To such end, the earrings Patented Mar. 14,1916.

may, as shown herein, be driven by suitable connections extending from,and operated by, the punching machine power shaft 5. Furthermore, theconnections for effecting the forward movement are preferably positiveand unyielding, while the rearwardlymoving means are yielding andcontinue to act for a period after the movement of the I carriage hasbeen arrested thus absorbing any tendency of the carriage to rebound,and holding the carriage firmly in position until the punches haveentered the plate or other material to be punched.

for intermittently and alternately rotating.

the shaft 16 in opposite directions.

To drive the shaft to effect a forward movement of the carriage, the endof the power shaft 5 is provided with a crank arm 19, to which there-isadjustably secured a pitman 20, pivotally attached to an arm 21,rotatably mounted. on the shaft 16. Pivotally secured to the arm. 21there is a pawl 23 adapted to engage the teeth of .a ratchet wheel 24keyed to the driving shaft 16. Means are provided to throw the pawl intoand out of engagement with the ratchet wheel, and to vary the intervalsof such engagement: and, to hold the pawl in its alternate positions, itis Drovided with faces 29 and 30, against which the end of athrust bolt31 is yieldingly held by a spring 32. To throw the pawl out ofengagement with the ratchet, the pawl is provided with a: finger 33adapted to be tripped b a stop 34., ad justably secured to an arc-shapedframe35; which frame is connected by means of brackets 36, 36 to theshaft bearing-block 25. The pawl, when out of engagement with theratchet, will extend in a general radial direction with relation to thecenter of the ratchet, and may be thrown to engage the ratchet by meansof a second step 37 secured also tothe frame 35. In the alternateengaging and disengaged positions of the pawl the bolt 31 bears againstthe faces 29 and 30. respectively; and it will be understood that thethrowing of the pawl to its alternate positions is efiected by thearcuate movement of the arm 21.

The yielding pawl-and-ratchet connection for turning the shaft 16 in theopposite direction is similar in its general construction to that justdescribed. The power shaft 5 is provided with a pinion 38, which mesheswith a second pinion 39,1otatably mounted on the punch frame 1. To thepinion 39 there is pivotally secured a pitman 40, either directly, asshown, or adjustably as inthecase of the pitman 20. The pitman 40 isalso pivotally secured at its opposite end to an arm 41 rotatablymounted on the shaft 16. A driving member, including a ratchet wheel 43and onemember of a friction clutch, is also rotatably mounted on: such.

shaft. Said friction clutch member consists.

frictional contact with each other by means.

of adjustable springs 48. To the arm 41 there is pivoted a pawl 49, heldyieldingly in engagement with the ratchet by means of a is spring 50,and provided with a roller 51, adapted, during such time as the pawl isto be held from engagement with the ratchet, to run on a-cam or track52. This track may be adjustably secured, as by means of bolts and slotsto a suitable support 42, attached in turn to the shaft bearing block26.

The machine shown hereinmay be used for punching material in all caseswherein no single spacing interval is as great as the sum of any twoadjacent intervals. In setting or adjusting the machine when it isintended to punch at irregular spacing inter-- vals, a bar 14 havingstops 13 spaced at the desired intervals is secured in proper posi-.tion to the support 15. The driving mechanism for the advance movementof the can riage is then adjusted to move the carriage.

forwardly, upon each revolution of: the

power shaft, a distance slightly greater (say one quarter of an inch)than the longest spacing interval. Also, the reverse driving mechanismis adjusted to effect a return movement of the carriage a distanceslightly greater than the-maximum necessary reverse movement.

minimum interval 3 inches, the mechanism As for example, if the maXi:-,mum spacing interval were 5 inches and the for advancing the carriageshould be set to drive the carriage more than 5 inches (say adjustingthe stop 34 and the track 52.

However, since boiler plates, and the like,

13.7mm V '8 are usually punched with evenly spaced holes, the stop plate1 1 for such purpose will have evenly spaced stops 13, and thecomplications of setting up or adjusting the carriage driving mechanismwill therefore be eliminated. v

In the operation of thema'chine the movable parts are'so coordinatedwith the rotation of the power shaft 5, that, during the upwardmovementof the punching head,

and after the punches havebeen withdrawnfrom the material being punched,the con-- nections for dr1v1ng the, carnage forwardly become effective.These connections are, from the power shaft, through crank arml9,'pitman 20, arm 21, pawl 23, ratchet :24, shaft 16, pinions 17, 17and racks 18, 18*; and such driving connections continue to act untilthe finger 33 of the pawl 23 strikes the stop 34 and causes the pawl tobe disengaged from the ratchet. Meanwhile the carriage will have beenadvanced so that the carriage-stopping pawl 61 will be a distancebeyonda stop 13. At this point of the rotation of the power shaft thepawl 49 of the rearwardly driving connections has,

through pinion 39, pitman 40 and arm i1,

been moved oil" the track 52, and hence into engagement with the ratchet43. The continued rotation of the power shaft then drives the carriagerearwardly through the friction clutch; and such rearward drivingcontinues to act (-theclutch plates slipping) after the carriage pawl61. has engaged a stop 13, thus absorbing the rebound of the carriageand holding the carriage firmly until the punches again engage or enterthe plate.

the stop 37 and be thereby thrown to ratchet-engaging position for thenext active stroke of such pitman, but, before such stroke begins, thepitman 10 will have moved to such point that the pawl 49 will bedisengaged from the ratchet 43. The cycle of operation thus described isre peated intermittently and automatically during each revolution of thecontinuously rotating power shaft 5, and until a complete line of holeshas been punched.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a tool-operating machine, the combination of a work-carriage,stopping mechanism effective to arrest a rearward movement of saidcarriage, unyielding means for effecting a forward, and yielding meansfor effecting a rearward movement of said carriage.

2. In a tool-operating machine, the combination of a movablework-carriage, means for effecting a step-by-step advance of saidcarriage, means for efiecting a rearward movement of the carriage aftereach advance thereof and a distance less than such advance, and meansfor varying the efiec- Near the end of the inactive stroke of the pitman20 the pawl 23 will strike tive lengths ofsaidzadvance and rearwardmovements of the carriage.

3. Ina tool-operating machine, the com-' bination of a movablework-carriage, a plurality of spaced stopping elements effective toarrest the rearward movement of said carriage, unyleldlng means foreifectlnga forward, and yielding means for effecting a rearward movementof said carriage, said rearwardly-moving means acting, after thestopping of the carriage, to resist the rebound thereof.

5. In a tool-operating machine, the combination of afmovablework-carriage, a continuously rotatable power shaft, a carriage drivingshaft operatively connected to said carriage, operative connections fromsaid power to said driving shaft to intermittently rotate thelatter inone direction, and operative connections from said power to said drivingshafts to rotate the latter in an opposite direction, said lastmentioned driving connections becoming efiective immediately upon "thefirst named driving connections becoming ineffective.

'6. In a tool-operating machine, the combination of a movablework-carriage, means mcludmg a rotary shaft for moving said carriage,means for driving said shaft in one direction, means including ayielding connection for drivmg said carriage 1n an opposite direction,each of said driving. means being ineffective while the other is saidcarriage, a continuously rotatable power shaft, pawl-and-ratchetconnections between said shafts for intermittently and alternatelyrotating the driving shaft in opposite directions.

8. In a tool-operating machine, the combination of a movablework-carriage, means including a rotary driving shaft for moving saidcarriage, a continuously rotatable power shaft, a pair ofpawl-and-ratchet connections between said shafts for intermit tently andalternately rotating the driving shaft in opposite directions, and meansfor throwing one of the pawls from engagement with its ratchet while theother pawl is in engagement with the other ratchet.

9. In a tool-operating machine, the combination of a movablework-carriage, means including a rotary driving shaft for moving saidcarriage, a continuously rotatable power shaft, a ratchet wheel secureddlrectly to said drlvlng shaft, a pltman movable by said powershaft andprovided with a pawl by said pawl-and-ratchet connection, said;

last named connections including, a yielding member.

10. In a tool-operating machine, the combination of a movablework-carriage, means including a rotary driven shaft for moving saidcarriage, a driving member rotatably mounted on said shaft and providedwith a ratchet wheel and wit'h'a yielding clutch member, a second clutchmember secured to said shaft and engaging the first named clutch member,a continuously rotatable power shaft, a pitman movable by said powershaft and provided with a pawl adapted to engage said ratchet to movesaid driving member in one direction, and operativeunyieldingconnections between said shafts to rotate the driven shaft ina direction opposite to its rotation by said paw1- and-ratchetconnection.

11. In a metal-punching machine, the combination with a punch, a movablework-- carriage, and a power shaft; of punch-reciprocating connectionsbetween said shaft and,

punch, a plurality of spaced stopping ele ments, operative andunyielding carriagedriving connections between said shaft and carriagetointermittently move the carriage forwardly a distance greater than theinter-; val between adj acent stoppingelements, and yielding drivingmeans effective upon 1the conclusion of each forward movement ofrocating connections between said shaft and punch, a plurality of spacedstopping elements, a rotatable carriage-drivingshaft, un-

yielding pawl-and-ratchet connections be--- tween said shafts tointermittently move said carriage forwardly a distance greater than theinterval between adjacent stopping elements, yielding pawl-and-ratchet'connections between said shafts to effect a reverse movement of saidcarriage upon the conclusion of the action of said forwardly movingconnections, and means to cause said stop to arrest the reverse movementof the carriage before the conclusion of the action: of said yieldingpawl-and-ratchet driving connections.

In testimony whereof 5 I have hereunto set my hand. GEORGE PAUL THOMAS.Witnesses:

PAUL N. CRITOHLOW,

FRANCIsJ. TOMASSON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G." I

